Previews

Given how incredibly awesome and boring Mike and I have been at picking the winners of the Pac-10 games, we’ve decided to stop doing it. But nobody panic, we’ll be picking against the spread for now on. So get your bookie on the phone, here are our picks:

UCLA vs Notre Dame
The Bruins are a two touchdown underdog in South Bend this weekend and for good reason. We saw last week that a good offense beats UCLA’s defense. The Irish aren’t, disappointingly for ND fans, quite as lethal as the Ducks, but they still put up some pretty good numbers. Brady Quinn has thrown 10 TDs and only 1 pick in the three games since losing to Michigan. In that same span, Darius Walker has averaged 115 rushing yards a game, versus only 60 yards per game in the first three. Notre Dame is coming alive right when UCLA seems to be regressing. Having lost Ben Olson, seen their defense exposed by Gary Crowton’s spread offense, and general dissatisfaction over Karl Dorrell, the Bruins seem to be at a crossroads. Win this game and they build their confidence for Cal and USC. Leave South Bend without a victory and its all downhill from here.

What UCLA should watch out for: Notre Dame’s running attack
What Notre Dame should watch out for: A revitalized Bruin defense

Brian’s Pick: UCLA (+13)
Mike’s Pick: UCLA (+13)


Oregon State vs Arizona
After beating the Cardinal, Arizona doesn’t look quite so terrible. Now they have a conference win, their defense appears to be credible and they’re only a win away from being .500. But, appearances are misleading. The Wildcats have lost their top two quarterbacks and are likely using two wideouts, including leading receiver Syndric Steptoe, as their backup QBs. Arizona fan better pray that Kris Heavner doesn’t get concussed. Like their inept offense really needed another reason to suck. And everyone knows how terrible Stanford is, so even 53 yards allowed doesn’t seem all that impressive. Arizona still isn’t particularly good at anything, save their rushing defense, which like Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, is either amazing or abysmal. The Beavers don’t really like to run the ball, though they tried it a little last week. I bet Riley reaches back into his bag of tricks and pulls out the playbook without the running plays. That means Matt Moore will be feasting on the Arizona secondary (did I just write that?), albeit the side Antoine Cason isn’t on. Plus, the Beavers beat UW by 10 and Arizona lost by 11, so by some algebraic law they should win by 21.

What OSU should watch out for: Heat stroke
What Arizona should watch out for: The Beavers hurting Kris Heavner

Brian’s Pick: OSU (-2.5)
Mike’s Pick: Arizona (+2.5)


*The Pac-10 Game of the Week*
Oregon vs Washington State
This game should be a shootout, if the Cougars can actually score when cross midfield. After three turnovers in the redzone last week, WSU can’t afford to fall any further behind in the Pac-10. The same can be said for Oregon. If they want to keep pace with Cal and USC, they must win this game. After visiting Pullman six times in the last seven years and winning five of them, it’s almost a home game for the Ducks. And while their offense is great, their defense is vulnerable. They got lit up by Cal and even let Stanford gain more than 300 yards. On paper, this looks like a fairly even matchup. Both teams have excellent offenses and mediocre defenses. The big difference though is points. The Ducks put up more than 30 points in every game but Cal, when they scored 24. The Cougars have only broken 30 twice and that was against Idaho and Stanford. If they really want a piece of the Ducks and a chance to play in the Sun Bowl instead of the Emerald Bowl, they better make those fourth down conversions this week.

What Oregon should watch out for: Mkristo Bruce terrorizing Dennis Dixon
What WSU should watch out for: The Duck ground attack

Brian’s Pick: Oregon (-4)
Mike’s Pick: Oregon (-4)

Stanford at ASU
The good news here is that one of these teams is going to get there first pac-ten win. The other team will be in the driver's seat for last place. ASU did not look as good as the scoreboard showed against USC last week, but they can at least move the ball and should be able to put up points against a truly pathetic stanford defense. Stanford now has to play without quarterback Trent Edwards. I'm trying to think of a silver lining for Stanford, but it's not coming. This one should be a blowout- and if it isn't, you can say goodbye to dirk Koetter.

What Stanford should watch for: Burgess and the ground game
What ASU should watch for:


Washington at California
The loss of Washington QB Isaiah Stanbeck is huge for the Huskies. Standbeck was beginning to make plays both with his legs and his arm, and turning the Husky offense into a reasonable unit. Without Stanbeck, the offense isn't much to write home about. Cal has continued to impress, and shows no signs of slowing down on offense or defense. Washington will need to find a new look offense in a hurry if it wants to stay in this game. If Cal can put up points early, look for them to run away with this one.

What Washington should watch for: Cal receiver Desean Jackson
What Cal should watch for: A new, unpredictable Husky QB